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Local Dirt from the Paris of the Rust Belt

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TRAFFIC CAMS FOR ME,

NO DASH CAMS FOR THEE?

So if dash cams have been installed in cop cruisers in almost every
municipality in the state, then why not in Cleveland? Councilman Zack
Reed and now Councilman Kevin Conwell (former and current public safety
committee chairmen, respectively) have failed for the last six years to
get police to budget the $3-$5 million needed to institute the change
on about 350 "frontline" vehicles. On Monday, outside council's
committee room, Safety Director Martin Flask reiterated how logistical
and financial shortfalls are holding the movement down. He also
foresees the need to bolster computer networks and redirect some
manpower if the cams are to be fully instituted. But still, he says,
"This is something I want to accomplish before retiring again." But
isn't $5 million small potatoes within the department's $184.5 million
annual budget? Police Chief Mike McGrath butted in to add his only
comment: "About 94 percent of our budget is personnel." Yeah, those
damn unions and their pay and benefits and stuff. —Dan
Harkins

.38 AIN'T SO SPECIAL ANYMORE

Ward 13 Councilman Joe Cimperman doesn't think that allowing armed
security guards licensed with the city to pack cop-standard 9mm
semi-automatic handguns — as opposed to the .38 revolvers they're
currently allowed — is going to make the city any safer. Safety
Director Flask and Police Chief McGrath were pushing for council's
legislative committee to approve the change on Monday, which would
allow those guards granted minor misdemeanor arrest powers in Cleveland
the right to carry the same firearms as police, as well as add the
requirement for immediate police notification of discharge and an extra
32 hours of training. "I'm going to say it: Are more guns the answer?"
asked Cimperman. "Do I want a gunman at the local convenience store at
night with the ability to [use] his weapon in a frightening situation
where policemen are going to have a tough time deciding: 'Draw or don't
draw?'" Flask called such incidents a "rarity." Others didn't see what
the argument was about: "They're facing criminals on the street with
firepower greater than what we allow them to have," said Ward 5
Councilwoman and Committee Chairwoman Phyllis Cleveland, who kept
dissent to a minimum before passing the new law along to the finance
committee. — Harkins